Thursday, Feb. 18, 2010

There will be blood...

My experience with the rough-and-tumble game of rugby is...

I had a mean collection of rugby shirts in the mid-to-late '80s. Seriously, I had a different rugby shirt per day to last me for two weeks solid, and then some. I was a collector, no kidding. I had the stripe-y kind. I had the kind with different colored blocked squares on 'em. But I never fell into the whole Coca-Cola, Pepsi, and Benetton product endorsement rugby shirt craze.

There were two main brands I collected: The more expensive line by Warthog, sold exclusively at Britches Great Outdoors (remember that ultra preppy store?) and The Traditionalist econoline from now-defunct department store chain Rich's, which has been absorbed by Macy's. The latter I had more of, as cutting grass and cleaning carpets didn't exactly fill my bank account to the brim.

Now, I own one singular, solitary dark green rugby shirt, from Old Navy - and it sits there in my closet collecting dust as I'm kind of afraid it might not fit anymore.

So, as far as rugby goes - that's as far as I've gotten.

I have never stepped between the lines to give the actual game a shot, although a buddy of mine tried to recruit me in the early '90s.

And I'm not about to start now. I value my teeth and my bones.

But that's ok, if you've got a rugby fix and don't want to sit up until 3 a.m. when ESPN actually airs some matches, there's a powerhouse team brewing up some excitement right here along the Grand Strand.

Coastal Carolina University's club rugby team is in the midst of defending its national championship.

Yes, that's right, a rugby squad from the beach won 2009's National Small College Rugby Organization (NSCRO) Men's Collegiate Division III National Championship in April, putting a hurting on SUNY-Oswego.

But in the heart of football country, that's not as exciting as posting a sub-.500 record and snagging all the headlines and having your coach appear in commercials and on call-in shows, now is it?

But some will argue that minus the padding and specialization (i.e. how many punters and kickers really get dirty?), that rugby is a much tougher sport than American football.

The CCU team's ascendance is not without controversy, as you will see if you turn to page 12 for local sportswriter Ian Guerin's in-depth profile of the Chanticleer rugby club, a look at the much-misunderstood sport itself and its growing popularity along the beach, and the pursuit of a second straight NSCRO championship.

And, to get you up to speed, there's a primer on rugby rules on page 14.

I took my two-year-old daughter out to the CCU rugby match on Feb. 6 in Conway and it was a wet, blustery day. We parked in a lot next to the field, which was actually near the goal line, and as I opened the back door of our CRV to get Ava out of her car seat, a scrum was developing near the goal line, with much screaming, grunting, cursing, cheering, and bravado immediately assaulting our ears.

"I don't like that noise, Daddy," she said, as I lifted her out of the car.

Normally a wild child who doesn't show much fear, Ava was quite the demure flower at this rugby match as she insisted I hold her as we watched the action unfold on the field.

We didn't stay long as I swear the temperature dropped while we there, but I can report that it was a pretty lively scene.

There was a string of fans up and down the sideline, many who brought their canines, tailgating gear and loud - some filled with expletives - words of encouragement as the Chants dismantled Armstrong Atlantic.

We got back in the car and headed to downtown Conway, but as we rolled away, Ava said, "where's the game, Daddy?"

I told her the game was still going on, and that we merely left. Then she clenched her fists, curled her arms inward and let out a guttural, "grrrrrrrrrrrahhhhhhhhh!"